Sweet fluffy pastry deep fried and lightly dusted with icing sugar, sound familiar? Oliebollen is thought to be the original doughnut recipe. Brought over to America and cooked by early Dutch settlers and of course being as tasty as they are they soon caught on and developed. Although traditionally oliebollen is only eaten during New Years, this tasty doughnut recipe is great all year round.

With adopted dutch cousins I always think that I also have a claim to a Dutch heritage. However stuffing my face with the rich and creamy Dutch desserts such as Oliebollen, Boterkoek and spiced apples a few days a year does not get me any closer to having a EU passport. Although I don’t have Dutch blood in my veins this surprisingly simple recipe for oliebollen at least lets me have some Dutch in my tummy.

-Hamish

Oliebollen – Dutch New Year’s Doughnuts

51

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 6 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: 30

Serving Size: 1 Ball

Ingredients

1 kg wheat flour

1 L tepid water

20 g salt

50 g sugar

16 g dried yeast

Sunflower oil (good for high heat cooking)

2 Tbs Powdered sugar for finishing touch

Instructions

Mix the yeast with the tepid water. Ensure that the water isn't too hot for the yeast before using.

Add the flour to the watery yeast. Mix the batter briefly, using the lowest setting on the blender.

Add the salt and the sugar. Mix in quickly.

Leave the batter to rise for 45 minutes in a warm place.

Use a large bucket to let the batter rise. To prevent the batter from dehydrating, lay a damp tea towel over the batter.

After the dough has risen, start making doughnuts. Heat the oil to a temperature from about 180ºC / 350ºF. Use a sauce (gravy) spoon to spoon the batter into the oil. Take a small or medium sized soup ladle, dip it in the hot oil briefly, scoop up some batter, then lower the ladle in the oil. The oliebol will float out of the ladle.

Don't fry too many at once––3 or 4 is the limit for most pans.

Fry the Dutch doughnuts for about six minutes.

When they are half cooked, they will roll over by themselves, however they sometimes they need a little nudge to turn.

Remove from the oil using the ladle or slotted spoon. Lay a piece of kitchen paper into a bowl or deep plate and put each of the cooked Dutch doughnuts on it. The kitchen paper soaks up most of the oil.

Before you serve the Dutch doughnuts, sprinkle them with powered sugar.